To Have And To Hold
by earthprincess4
Summary: Eighteen year old Bella has just returned back to Forks after finding out she's pregnant. Having nowhere to go and no one to depend on she ends up leaning on her once best friend, Alice's older brother, Edward.
1. Chapter 1

**To Have and To Hold**

**A/N: This is the first of two brand new multi-chapter stories I'm working on. My goal is to post chapters for this story every other week. However, with that said I do have 4 little boys who have very busy schedules, so please don't hold me to that schedule or get upset if I'm unable to update like planned. I will do my best, but I'm only human who does need sleep every once in a while and my children will always come first. **

**Thanks venomousgal for being such an amazing beta and support system, who I learn from every time I get a chapter back.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or the characters. No copyright infringement intended.**

**EPOV**

I walked into my parent's home with my laundry bag swung over my shoulder. This was my normal weekend routine. I drive home every Saturday afternoon and while my mom does my laundry for me, I chat with my dad about the city life. My dad had issues with me living in the city. He always imagined I'd stay close to home in our small town of Forks, but I had bigger ambitions and I liked the city.

My house had a washer and dryer but damned if I knew how to use them. Here I am a twenty-five year old man and still having my mom do my laundry. She typically made up a few dinners I could heat up in the oven at home as well. She didn't want me eating take-out all the time because she said it wasn't healthy for me. Yes, I know I'm a mama's boy, and I'm proud of it. My mom gives me anything I want and does everything for me. Who wouldn't want that?

I threw my laundry bag on the floor of the laundry room and walked towards the kitchen. My little sister, Alice was sitting at the bar in her pajamas and eating a bowl of cereal.

"Did you just wake up?" I asked.

"Unfortunately, yes. I could have slept for a few more hours," she answered with a sigh.

"You do realize it's almost one in the afternoon, right?" I wondered.

"What's your point?"

"Never mind," I laughed.

I walked to the fridge and pulled out the carton of orange juice to get a drink.

"Where are Mom and Dad?" I asked.

"Dad had an emergency at the hospital and Mom just left for the grocery store. She told me to tell you she'd be back within the hour."

"Okay."

I opened the cupboard and pulled out a cup. While pouring, I noticed a slight movement from outside the kitchen window. I raised my head to get a better look and noticed the back of a small person with long dark wavy hair sitting on the edge of the porch. She had her head down and almost appeared to be crying.

"Alice, who is on our back porch?" I inquired.

Alice's gaze followed mine to the back porch and landed upon the mysterious girl sitting on the edge of our porch.

"It's just Bella Swan," she answered nonchalantly.

"Bella Swan, your best friend who ran off with her boyfriend last summer?" I asked for clarification.

"That's her. She showed up last night soaking wet and crying."

"What happened to her?" I asked feeling a sudden sense of concern.

"She got knocked up by her dumbass boyfriend and then he left her."

"What!" I gasped.

I remembered Bella being this innocent little girl who had been best friends with Alice since grade school. She'd spent the night at our house almost every weekend from the time she was about ten years old. Last summer she took off with her boyfriend, Mike Newton and hadn't been back since. Alice carried a lot of resentment towards her for leaving right before their senior year of high school. I had heard her parents were distraught and did everything they could to convince her to come back, to no avail.

All I knew about Mike Newton was he wasn't known as being the nicest person in the area. For whatever reason, Bella worshipped the ground he walked on and alienated her friends and family to be with him.

"Why did she come here instead of going back home?" I wondered.

"You have a lot of questions," Alice pointed out. "I'm not awake enough to answer them all."

She hopped off the stool and placed her bowl in the sink.

"I'm just curious." I admitted, still staring out the window.

"Look," she began with a heavy sigh. "All she told me was she got pregnant and Mike suddenly decided he wanted to join the army or something. He left her stranded in San Diego with nothing. Apparently once he's done with basic training or whatever he's coming back. Thankfully, she was able to hitchhike her way here. She doesn't want to go home because she's afraid of what her parents will say and do. She knows they're still mad at her for leaving the way she did and with her dad's election for police commissioner she's afraid of embarrassing them. She came here thinking I wouldn't still be mad at her, but I am. Mom and Dad let her stay last night, but they aren't going to let her stay forever. Honestly, I don't want her to stay either."

"Have a little compassion, Alice." I snapped, appalled at her lack of empathy.

"She's the one who left to have this great, wonderful life. She's not my responsibility to take care of. She needs to call up Mike and make him take responsibility for his mistakes," she sneered.

I shook my head in amazement of her behavior. I never realized how resentful she was towards Bella. "The least you can do is talk to her and try to make her feel better. Try to think if you were in her shoes. Wouldn't you want a friend to lean on?"

"I wouldn't get myself in that type of situation. I'm not that stupid." Alice retorted, with her hands on her hips.

"You're being kind of a bitch, you know?" I stated.

"How would you feel if your best friend abandoned you, then showed up out of the blue and kept you up all night puking? You know I don't like sick people."

"She's not sick, Alice. She's pregnant." I sighed, exasperated.

"It doesn't change the fact that I had to listen to her puke her guts out all night long. I don't want to listen to that for the next nine months."

"Whatever, Alice," I said rolling my eyes and walking past her. "No wonder she left. You aren't the greatest friend."

She glared at me in response as I opened up the sliding glass door and walked out on the porch.

I could hear Bella sniffling and quietly crying. I walked up behind her and handed her a tissue before sitting down next to her. Startled by my presence, she jumped slightly before taking the tissue from my hand with a grateful smile.

"I don't know if you remember me," I began, hesitantly. "I'm Alice's brother, Edward."

"I know who you are," she replied in a small sad voice. "I haven't been gone that long."

"I was just trying to make conversation," I excused.

"Sorry, I'm just a little on edge right now." She sighed and ran her fingers through her long hair, pushing it back and away from her face.

"Forgive me, but I asked Alice for details about why you were here. Are you going to be okay?" I offered, scooting closer to her.

"I don't know," she cried. "Alice doesn't want me here, nor do your parents. Not that I expect them to take me in. They see me as a bad influence on Alice and I don't blame them. I just didn't have anywhere else to go. The last time I talked to my parents they told me not to come home. I made my choice and I have to live with it. I don't think they'll let me back in so easily. Not with my current condition anyway."

"I think knowing they have a grandchild on the way might change their minds. People say stupid things when they're upset and frustrated."

"Still, I don't know if I want to go home. I don't want to look at their faces everyday and see the disappointment and shame they have for me." She looked down at her lap and twisted her fingers together.

I rubbed her shoulder in a comforting way and whispered, "I'm sure it'll be okay."

"You don't know my parents." She climbed to her feet and walked back into the house. I followed behind her and distinctly heard her in the bathroom gagging. I felt sorry for her. Alice, who was still in the kitchen, made a disgusted face and covered her mouth, "Tell me when she's gone. I'll be upstairs taking a shower."

I always knew Alice was squeamish around sick people but I didn't think she'd be so rude to someone she once considered her best friend.

I rummaged through the kitchen and found some saltine crackers and poured Bella a glass of water. When she finally emerged from the bathroom she looked miserable. She was pale white and her eyes were bloodshot. She was even shaking slightly from the stress the vomiting was putting on her body.

"I got you a glass of water and some crackers," I offered. She walked over and sat down on the stool very slowly. She nibbled on a cracker but barely ate any of it.

"Thanks," she replied with the weakest, smallest voice I'd ever heard come out of her mouth. Growing up she was always fairly loud and boisterous. She never held anything back. This was definitely a different Bella than the one I once knew.

"How far along are you?" I asked.

"I think about two months."

"Have you seen a doctor yet?" I inquired, concerned about her health.

"No," she laughed bitterly. "I don't have any money. How am I going to pay for a doctor?"

"You need to, though," I pointed out. "You can't go nine months without seeing a doctor. There are so many things that could go wrong if you don't have adequate health care. There are services you can get to help with the health care."

"Why are you being so nice to me?" she questioned skeptically. "Alice is barely speaking to me and your parents look at me like I'm the scum of the earth, yet you're giving me advice and trying to help me feel better. Why?"

I shrugged and lightly chuckled. "I guess it's in my nature. It's what I do for a living. I see at least a half a dozen girls like you every month. I'm a social worker and it's my job to help people in similar situations as yours."

"Oh… you probably think I'm pretty pathetic, huh?" She grimaced and looked down at the counter.

"No," I laughed. "You aren't pathetic and you'll get through this. All you need to do is find the right type of assistance. I can even help you if you want."

"I don't want to be a charity case. Besides, I haven't even decided if I'm keeping the baby." Her brown eyes lifted to meet mine, shining with unshed tears.

My heart sank when she suggested not keeping the baby. I'm not supposed to have an opinion or try to push my views on people who choose abortion but half of the women coming into my office afterwards regretted what they did and having to watch them going through traumatic guilt and pain was always heartbreaking.

"There are those options as well. I can help you find the right doctor," I offered quietly.

"I'm not meaning I'm planning to have an abortion," she quickly corrected with a look of horror on her face. "I could never do that, I just meant I've thought about giving the baby up for an adoption. I can't be a mother. I don't know the first thing about taking care of a baby and no child would ever want me as a mom."

"Well, I can help you with that part also," I informed her.

"I don't know. I really haven't given a lot of thought about what I want to do. I'm just trying to come to terms with what happened and where I go from here." She blushed and stared at her hands again.

"Edward," my mom called from the front door, shattering the sudden silence.

"In here," I shouted back. She walked into the kitchen with a grocery bag in her arms. "Do you need any help?"

"Could you?" she asked, smiling. "I've got a couple more bags out in the car still."

"Sure, Mom." I walked out to the car and loaded two bags in my arms to carry in. My mom was already putting stuff away when I walked back into the kitchen. Bella sat there silently and uncomfortably while my mother completely ignored her presence.

"I'm planning to make you some enchiladas and some stroganoff to take home with you, Edward," my mom informed me.

"Sounds great, Mom," I said in return, smiling sheepishly at her.

"I think I should go now," Bella whispered, suddenly standing to her feet. "Thank you so much for letting me stay the night, Mrs. Cullen. I truly appreciate your generosity."

"It's not a problem, Bella," my mom replied as sweetly as possible. "I hope you can get things worked out with your parents. I'm sure they'd be very happy to see you."

"Yeah," Bella said with a doubtful tone.

"I'll walk you out," I offered guiding her out of the house and on to the front porch.

"Thank you for the advice," she said touching my arm, with a grateful expression.

"Are you planning to go back to your parents now?" I asked.

She shrugged and shook her head. "I don't know, I guess."

"Do you want a ride?" I asked, gesturing towards my car.

"No, I'll be fine. I like to walk it helps me get past the sickness."

I pulled out my wallet and took out a business card handing it over to her. "Well, if you need anything don't hesitate to call, okay."

She nodded her head, looking down at the card in her hand. "Thank you." Turning around, she slowly walked down the few steps and towards the road. I waited until she was out of sight before going back inside and sitting down at the bar in the kitchen. My mom had already started a load of my laundry and was busily making meals.

"Poor girl," my mom sympathized. "I feel sorry for her, but I don't want her around Alice. I don't want her giving Alice any ideas about getting pregnant at the same time. I know she tried very hard to get Alice to leave with her when she did."

"I didn't know that," I commented, somewhat shocked.

"Yeah, Alice told me about a week after Bella left that the plan was for her to leave also. They had these high hopes to go off to Hollywood and become big stars. That Mike Newton kid supposedly has an uncle who is a director and promised them a roll in his next project. I'm so thankful Alice changed her mind. It turns out that uncle was actually a porn director and wanted Alice and Bella to be featured in his next movie. He had plans to get them fake ID's and set them up in an apartment if they agreed to be in his porno movies. Mike was going to be his apprentice and learn the ropes so he could start making his own movies."

"How do you know all this?" I demanded, scrubbing a hand through my hair.

"Well, apparently I raised a pretty smart girl. She did some research on this director Mike told them about and found out what he really was. Once she had evidence she tried to talk Bella out of going. I guess she was even begging her to stay but Bella trusted Mike and told Alice she was a liar and was just jealous because she had a boyfriend and Alice didn't. Bella left and Alice stayed."

"So, did Bella actually do these porn movies?" I asked, unable to associate the sweet girl I knew with a porn star image.

"I couldn't tell you, Son," she answered. "I hope not, but I'm afraid she probably did since she's been gone for so long. I fear who the father of that child she's carrying is. It could very easily be anyone's."

The concern I had for Bella's wellbeing grew even more after finding out this information. Knowing this definitely explained the resentment Alice still had for her and why my parents didn't want her around. It also explained why she thought she couldn't go home.

"Is she gone?" Alice whispered, walking into the kitchen.

"Yeah, she left a few minutes ago," my mom replied, making a face.

"Thank God. I don't think I could handle much more of the puking anymore. I can't believe she actually got herself knocked up. She always said she never wanted to have kids or to get married," Alice commented.

"I hope she goes home to her parents. She needs someone to take care of her. She's so young and already in such a bad situation. I'm just glad I raised smart kids who didn't get messed up in the same way she did," my mom added.

Alice smiled at her appraisal and grabbed a pinch of shredded cheese before walking out of the kitchen and into the living room. She plopped herself down and started watching TV.

"Mom, do you actually think she's going to go home?" I asked, apprehension overcoming me.

"I hope so, but I don't know. I just hope she doesn't go back to California where she got in trouble in the first place. As much as I don't want her around Alice, I still care about her and want her to get her life straightened out. I've known her since she was just a little girl and always considered her like a daughter. I just want her to have a better life than she has now."

"I gave her my card and told her to call me if she needed any help," I admitted. My mom smiled and reached across the counter to place her hand on my cheek.

"I'm so proud of you for being the caring and helpful man you've become. You and Alice are my greatest accomplishments. I couldn't be any prouder of who you have become and the work you do for the less fortunate," she praised. As much as I appreciated her compliment of my work I couldn't help feel a little like she was being condescending to people who didn't have a perfect life like she considered ours to be.

I left the kitchen and walked into the living room to watch TV with Alice for a while. I didn't pay much attention to what she was watching as my thoughts kept drifting to whether or not Bella was okay. Blame it on the day job but I couldn't let go of my concern for her. I kept imagining if it was Alice who was in her shoes and what I would do for my sister to help her out. I wondered if it was my sister, how my parents would react and what they would do. Would they abandon her or would they be compassionate and want to do everything they could for their little girl regardless of how she messed up? I liked to think it would be the latter but I really wasn't sure anymore.

After a few hours my dad came home looking exhausted. He greeted all of us briefly then he went upstairs to take a shower before dinner. My mom made a double pan of enchiladas so I could take some home with me as well as the stroganoff she had told me about earlier. She also made a pan of brownies and some chicken salad mix for sandwiches. My mom always thought I ate like I was ten people. When I still had roommates it was fine but now the food she sent home with me every week never got finished. I actually ended up giving my neighbors some of it recently just because I didn't want it to go to waste.

"All your laundry is washed and folded in the basket. I ironed all your good shirts and put them on hangers so be sure to hang them up as soon as you get home," my mom instructed.

"I will, Mom."

"When are you ever going to learn how to take care of yourself?" my dad asked while watching my mom fill the back seat of my car with the basket of clothes and the casserole pans full of food.

"I guess when I get married and have someone else to do it for me?" I joked. My dad laughed and shook his head at my response.

"I raised you well, didn't I?" he commented causing my mom to give him a dirty look with a raised eyebrow. I laughed at their exchange before giving my mom a hug thanking her for the food and doing my laundry.

I headed home around nine that night. It was a long drive back home but I didn't want to stay at my parents for the night like I did occasionally. I had plans to mow my lawn and do some maintenance around my house while we had the rare nice weather for the weekend.

I headed out on the highway and turned my music up loudly while I drove. I was bobbing my head and keeping beat to the music with my hand on the steering wheel when I saw Bella walking along the side of the highway. My gut told me I needed to stop.

"Bella," I called out to her, rolling down my window. She walked closer to the passenger side of the car and looked inside. "Can I give you a ride somewhere?"

"No, I'm fine." She backed up and shook her head.

"I really don't mind. You can't walk along the highway in the middle of the night like this. You're going to get hit by a car. Just let me drive you to where you're headed." I begged.

She looked across the car meeting my eyes with a sad, pained expression. "I don't know where I'm headed. I don't have anywhere to go."

I turned off the car and hopped out walking around to where she was.

"You aren't going back to your parents?" I inquired.

"I can't. They won't accept me." She bit her lip and sniffled, her small chin wobbling.

"You can't know that. They're your parents. I think they would be a lot more understanding than you think they would be." I smoothed my hand over her shoulder and rubbed gently.

"Edward, you don't know what they said to me when they found out where I was and what I was doing. I'm so ashamed I can't even talk about it," she cried. "How do I tell my unborn child what it is I did?"

"I can imagine you're having a lot of regrets and fear right now, but you need someone to help you figure this out. I can't just leave you here on the side of the road in the middle of the night." I replied softly.

"I'll be fine," she assured mustering up all the courage she could. "I've been in worse predicaments, believe me."

"I'm sure you have but that doesn't mean you should. Why don't you come home with me tonight?" I offered. "Tomorrow I can try to help you figure out what to do."

"I don't want to be a charity case," she spit with an angry tone. "Someone will eventually pick me up and give me a ride somewhere."

"It's not charity, Bella. I'm only trying to help because you're practically family. Right now you need to think about your child and what's best for him. Now, if you want somewhere to stay for the night then get in the car, if not I'll be forced to call the police and have them pick you up."

"You wouldn't," she dared.

"I most definitely will. It's my job," I deadpanned.

She sighed contemplating her options.

"It's really not a hard choice, Bella. A warm house with a comfortable bed or a jail cell for the night," I added.

"Fine," she accepted albeit reluctantly. I opened the passenger door for her and helped her in. All she had with her was a small backpack which looked to be rather empty as is. She really did have nothing.

I walked back around the car and got in before pulling back out on the highway. She was rather quiet during the drive, and after a while I noticed she'd fallen asleep. She probably needed the sleep after everything she'd been through the last few days.

While I drove I wondered what exactly I was doing taking her home with me. This was something strictly prohibited in my line of work. However, she was like a little sister, and I couldn't just leave her on the side of the road. I had to help her. It was only for one night. Tomorrow I'd try to convince her that the best option was to go home to her parents. And if she still refused, come Monday I'd do what I could to find her temporary housing and assistance.

I pulled into my driveway a little after midnight. Bella was still fast asleep in the passenger seat, so I gently shook her shoulder to wake her up.

"Bella, we're here," I whispered. She stirred and opened her eyes to look around. She yawned as she picked up her backpack off the floorboard in front of her and opened her door. I grabbed my basket of laundry from the back seat and walked her to the front door. I opened up the door allowing her to step in front of me. While she looked around, I placed the basket on the floor before going back out to my car and getting the rest of my stuff.

"There's a spare bedroom down the hall," I explained gesturing for her to follow me. I pointed out the bathroom, knowing she would probably need to use it at some point. I opened the door to the spare bedroom and turned on the light. This used to be my roommate, Garrett's room until he moved to New York. There really wasn't a lot to it except for a bed and dresser with a few old sports posters on the wall that Garrett had left behind. "I'll get some sheets and a blanket for you."

Leaving her in the room alone, I walked to the hall closet to get bedding and a couple towels. I walked back in the room and began making the bed up for her, while I explained she was welcome to take a shower and help herself to any food in the kitchen she wanted. She stood there silently and completely still while I spoke.

"Well, it's late and I have some stuff I need to get done tomorrow so I'm going to bed. I'll see you in the morning," I sighed walking out of the bedroom.

"Edward," she called. I stopped at my bedroom door and looked back across the hall to her. "Thank you."

I smiled and nodded my head before slipping into my own bedroom and shutting the door. I really didn't know what I was doing, but I had an overwhelming urge to help her. She needed help more than anyone I'd ever worked with. She needed a friend.

**Thanks for reading. I'm not one who begs for reviews and I understand if you don't want to leave one, but I'd really love to hear what everyone thinks whether good or bad. I'm all for constructive criticism. I'm sorry I don't always reply to every review I get. I always have good intentions to but with such a busy schedule there never seems to be enough time for everything I want to do. I truly appreciate every single review and reader I get and will try very hard to answer any questions anyone has, so don't hesitate to ask.**

**Happy Canada Day to all my Canadian readers and Happy 4th of July weekend to all my American readers. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: First off I just need to say WOW! The response this story got on its first chapter was amazing. I'm kind of shocked. So thank you to everyone who not only read it, but all those who added it to communities, and tweeted about it, and added it to facebook rec sites. You are all amazing. I'm so thankful to have such awesome readers.**

**One question that was brought up a lot in reviews was how old are Bella and Edward. It might have been something easily missed but in the first couple paragraphs of the first chapter Edward says he's 25. As for Bella it was implied through Edward's thoughts that she left with Mike the summer before her senior year in high school and now she's back about nine months later. So, this makes her eighteen.**

**Another thing, the first chapter was all about rumors and assumptions, not necessarily the truth. Sorry if I scared anyone with Bella's past. You'll get a little more of the truth in this chapter.**

**I know I said this chapter would be posted on the 15th but the day was a very busy and hectic day trying to get the awards site up and running as well as editing a contest entry, plus of course I have 4 sons who are home all day for summer break. Since I live on the west coast it is still technically the 15th for me, though. ;) I will try very hard to make sure updates get posted on the 1st and 15th of every month.**

**Thank you Venomousgal for being an amazing beta and friend. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or the characters involved. No copyright infringement intended.**

I woke up in a strange bed and felt my stomach twist once again. I was so sick of being sick. I didn't want to be pregnant anymore. I wanted this morning sickness to just go away. I felt like I probably had it worse than I was supposed to. As often as I was throwing up couldn't be normal.

After getting out of bed as fast as I could without falling on my face, I ran down the hall and into the bathroom to vomit. When I was finished, I sat on the floor trying to remember where exactly I was. Lately everything had been a haze. I had been in a haze.

"Bella?" a familiar voice called from the other side of the door. Suddenly everything came back to me. I was at my best friend, Alice's, brother's home. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. I-It's just morning sickness," I stuttered out. I pulled myself up to the sink to wash my hands and gargle. After taking a look at myself in the mirror, I realized I looked ghastly. My face was sunken in, there were dark circles under my eyes, and my eyes themselves were a little bloodshot. If people didn't know better they'd probably think I was a druggie.

I slowly opened the door and walked down the hall to the kitchen where Edward was busy cooking. The smell of whatever he was cooking, or more like burning, made me nauseous all over again. I had to cover my mouth and nose to prevent myself from being sick.

"Sorry," he apologized without even telling him what was wrong. He quickly opened the sliding glass door to let the smell dissipate. After standing there for a few minutes trying to take control of my stomach, I finally managed to pull myself up onto a stool.

"Thank you, for letting me stay here last night," I said as he continued to work in the kitchen.

"You're welcome," he replied with a shy smile. "I uh… I attempted to make you something to eat. I figured you might be hungry. Unfortunately, I think I burned everything I was trying to make."

"It's okay. I'm really not hungry."

"You need to eat, Bella. Why don't I take you out to breakfast? My treat," he offered.

"No, I'm fine. You've done enough already."

"Well, I'm starving and I'd really enjoy the company. I hate going into restaurants by myself. I feel like a complete loser."

My eyes rose to his and I saw this sweet caring expression on his face. I'd never met someone who was so kind before.

"Please?" he begged with pleading eyes.

I smiled bashfully at his persistence. "Okay," I agreed.

I climbed off the stool and followed him out to his car. He rushed around to the passenger side and opened the door for me, even taking my hand to help me in. I was taken aback by his chivalry. No one had ever opened a car door for me, not even Mike. I slipped into the seat and fastened my seatbelt while he ran around to the other side. Edward drove a short distance into town and stopped at this small little diner, which to me looked almost deserted. We walked in and were shown to a booth. I looked over the menu and just the thought of some of the things that were offered made my stomach turn. I finally settled on just a short stack of pancakes. It was about the only thing I thought I might be able to keep down.

Once the waitress took our order Edward started questioning me. I was expecting this and was therefore somewhat prepared for it.

"So," he began. "Would you like to tell me what happened to bring you all the way back home only to not go home?"

"I just made some mistakes and I burned a lot of bridges. I want to go home, but I'm afraid. The last time I talked to my parents they told me never to come back. My dad was furious and told me if I wanted to be an adult, I needed to live like an adult. He didn't want me calling them for financial help when I ran out of money and he didn't want me to come back when Mike broke my heart. He made it perfectly clear I wasn't allowed back in the house," I admitted, picking aimlessly at the cracked Formica on the table.

"I doubt he meant it like that. I work with runaways on a daily basis and they all say the same thing. Their parents didn't want them back, but you know what, nine out of ten times those parents were ecstatic to see their child come home. Seriously, it's always the same. Parents say stuff like that out of frustration and in some weird way they think it's going to scare the kid into coming home. Most of the time it backfires on them and they end up living in regret," he replied, his green eyes shining at me.

"It's not just what they said. I left for a reason in the first place. I don't want to go back," I retorted.

"Did something happen before you left?" he questioned suspiciously. "You can tell me. It'll be strictly confidential."

"Nothing happened exactly. It's just…" I sighed to pause and gather my thoughts. "My dad is the police chief. He's hoping to become police commissioner. Growing up was like living in a military training camp. I had to do everything exactly like he wanted me to. I had strict rules and curfews to live by. They barely let me see Mike because they thought he would get in the way of my studies and he was a bad influence. I just got to a point where I didn't want to live in a dictatorship anymore. I love my parents but I can only live like that for so long. If I go back it'll just end up being the same way, maybe even worse. I don't want to live like that, and I definitely don't want my child to live like that."

"I'd really like to help you get things figured out if you'll let me, but I need to know what you want," he replied softly.

"I don't know what I want. All I know is I can't go home and I can't go back to Mike," I muttered.

"Then would you be interested in letting me find you temporary housing?" he asked, curiously.

"No. I can figure it out on my own." I crossed my arms and tried to look like I meant it, even though I had no clue what I was doing.

"Bella, you can't keep being stubborn. I'm trying to help and you're pushing me away. If you don't get proper medical care and have an appropriate place to live by the time your baby is born, then the doctors will be obligated to refer you to a child case worker and either you'll have to accept help or you'll have your baby taken away," Edward retorted, his hands grabbing at his hair in frustration.

"Like I said, I might give the baby up for adoption anyway," I countered.

"It doesn't matter. You still need proper health care for you and the baby. There are so many life threatening things that can go wrong while you're pregnant."

I looked down at the table ashamed of what my life had become.

He sighed in exasperation as our food was placed in front of us. "Look, I'm not trying to be mean but you have to let go of your pride every once in a while and let someone help you. I've known you since you were just a little girl and you don't deserve this. Let me help you."

Tears welled in my eyes as he spoke. "I don't want to be a burden to anyone," I cried.

He reached across the table and squeezed my hand. "You aren't a burden. I _want_ to help."

"I just don't know how you can help me," I whispered, my eyes filling with unshed tears.

"First of all, I can feed you." He picked up my fork and held it out towards me motioning to the food in front of us. I forced a smile and took the fork from him, pushing myself to eat.

"So," he began again a little while later after we both had eaten quite a bit of food. "I have a proposition for you. I don't feel comfortable leaving you all alone. I think you need some support and someone to keep an eye on you."

I sighed and glared over at him. "You sound like my father. I don't need anyone to take care of me."

"Just hear me out," he requested. I slumped back in my seat and crossed my arms against my chest. "If I try to help you find temporary housing it's going to take a while. I'd feel more comfortable if you weren't on the streets or living with random people you barely know. I have a fairly large house for just me. If you're willing then I'd like you to stay for a while until we can figure something else out. I'm not going to tell you what to do or try to parent you in any way. This will be like a roommate arrangement just until we can find a better solution. In the mean time, you can get set up with a doctor and try to get back on track."

"You want to be roommates?" I asked in disbelief.

"I want you to have something stable," he corrected. "I'd do the same thing for Alice if she was in this situation. You are as much a sister to me as Alice is, and I don't want you stressing about what you're going to do."

I bit my lip and thought it over for a little bit. "Don't you think your family will be a little upset about me living with you?" I inquired.

He laughed and shook his head. "I'm a grown man. I don't need to ask my parents for permission to have a roommate."

"I know, but I don't think your parents like me much anymore. And I got the impression Alice didn't really want me around either."

"My family is complicated. My parents are just very protective, especially my mother. And as for Alice, she's become kind of stuck up over the last few months. I don't even know who she is anymore. I guess she's going through that rebellious teenage stage. She's been hanging out with Jessica at school a lot and I think that's what has her acting the way she is. Honestly, I think she could use a real friend like you again," he sighed, his eyes troubled.

The thought of being a good friend for Alice made me smile. For so long all I'd heard was that I was not good enough. Alice was mad at me, my parents were mad at me, Mike betrayed me then left me, and now I had no one.

"I take it, if I don't agree you're just going to call the cops on me like you threatened to do last night," I stated, not doubting he would.

"No," he retorted shaking his head. "If you want to walk out that door and find your own way, I won't stop you, Bella. However, if you do I'd think you were a little bit of a fool."

I laughed and shied away from him. With a heavy, or maybe relieved, sigh I accepted and nodded in agreement. Edward paid the bill and we headed back to his house. For the first time in weeks I felt safe and like a huge weight had been lifted off of me. I almost felt like the nausea I was suffering from was going to subside now. At least I hoped it would.

Back in the comfort of Edward's house, we sat down on his couch and discussed the arrangements. All he asked was I clean up after myself and I take care of myself. How hard was that? There had to be something else I could do to help out. I didn't want to be a freeloader. I didn't want to be his little charity project.

"Can I ask a favor?" I questioned.

"Sure," he agreed.

"I feel horrible for asking this after you've already done so much for me but would it be possible for you to help me find a part time job somewhere?" I asked. "It doesn't have to be much. I'm a good worker and I learn fast. All I need is something to earn a little extra money so I can pay you rent."

"I can help you, but it's not necessary to help out financially."

"Let me help in some way. I would feel better if I did," I argued.

"I'm sure we can work something out but let's try to get you settled first," he suggested.

"Thank you. I need to find a doctor too," I reminded him, patting my abdomen.

"I have a list of some of the best in the city." He hopped up and walked into one of the rooms only to come back with a file with a stack of papers in it. "This should get you started. Take a look and figure out which doctors you want to call tomorrow. I'll help you out getting to your appointments once you find one."

"Are you this nice and helpful with all your clients?" I asked.

"I try to be. It's against the rules to bring anyone home with me, but with you it's a little different."

"Why am I different?" I wondered.

He shrugged and smiled. "Because you're family."

His words were a welcome comfort to my broken spirit. This entire day was like a miracle. I don't know how I would have survived if Edward hadn't stepped in to save me. For the first time in so long I felt like I finally belonged somewhere. However strange it may be to feel more comfortable with my best friend's brother over my own family, boyfriend, or best friend, I did.

"Well, I need to get some things done around the house so I'll be in and out. Make yourself at home and unpack your stuff if you want," he suggested before standing and walking out into the garage. I didn't have anything to unpack so I just lounged on the couch and looked over the papers Edward had given me.

After a while I got up and decided to do the dishes Edward had left from his attempt at making breakfast this morning. The burnt on eggs were hard to scrub out of his pans but for some reason scrubbing those pans made me happy. It made me feel like I had a purpose and a reason for being there. I heard a lawn mower start up outside a little while later. For some reason the smell of freshly cut grass smelled so good. I wanted to go outside and just take it in. I dried my wet hands on a towel and walked outside to sit on the front porch. I watched and breathed in deeply while Edward mowed the lawn.

"Shawn, get back here!" a woman shouted after little kid, who looked to be about four or five years old, ran across the yard in front of me. "Shawn!" She chased after him while he giggled and tried to hide from her. He ran up on the porch and used me as a hiding spot. To help this noticeably frazzled mother out, I grabbed him around the waist and held him still. He squirmed and tried to get free from my arms. but I did my best to hold him until his mother got to him.

"Let go!" he whined.

"Sorry, Buddy, I think your mom wants you," I informed him.

The beautiful, blonde haired woman walked up to the porch with a relieved look on her face and grabbed the little boy by the wrist. "What were you thinking?" she scolded. "I've told you a hundred times not to run from me."

He squirmed free from her grasp and ran to a man who was chatting with Edward in the front yard. He wrapped his arms around the man's leg and glared over at his mom.

"I'm so sorry if he bothered you. He's been in a rebellious stage lately. I seriously don't know what to do with him anymore," she apologized.

"It's completely okay. I'm glad I could help you out by capturing him," I giggled.

"I'm surprised he came up by you at all. He's usually very shy around strangers," she pointed out.

I looked out at him again and saw Edward ruffle the boy's hair and say something the little boy obviously thought was funny.

"That's my husband, Emmett. For some reason Shawn thinks he can get away with anything when daddy is around," she said. "I'm Rose McCarty. We live next door."

"Isabella Swan," I introduced shaking her hand in greeting.

"You must be one of Edward's girls."

"One of Edward's girls?" I questioned curiously.

"Oh I didn't mean it to sound so scandalous. Actually, I don't think I've ever seen a girl here with Edward. I just meant… well… It is what he does, right? He council's young girls and helps women out who are in tough spots so they can get back on their feet. I've never seen him bring someone home before, though. Unless… Are you two serious? Obviously you must if you're here. Like I said I've never seen a girl here with him before."

I laughed. "To answer your question, no we aren't 'serious' as you put it. We're just friends. I've known him most of my life since his sister is my best friend. I needed a place to stay for a little while and Edward offered to let me stay here."

"I see," she said, unconvinced by my answer. "Forgive me for being nosy, but is Edward gay?"

"Excuse me?" I gasped, shocked by the question.

"Well, I've been suspicious of it for a while. He's always so nice to everyone and he helps people out without ever getting anything in return. I can't tell you how many times he's watched Shawn for us so Emmett and I could get away for a couple hours. He's got to be the politest man I've ever met. And to top it off he doesn't ever seem to have girls over. Being a good looking guy like he is, I'd expect he'd have girls knocking his door down. I'm not saying it's a bad thing if he is gay, I'm just curious."

"I honestly couldn't tell you if he's gay or not," I laughed. "He is really nice, though. I don't think I've ever met anyone like him before."

She smirked at me and winked her eye like she had some sort of secret. I hoped she didn't think I had a thing for Edward or something. He was my best friend's brother. There was nothing else there.

"Tell your mother you're sorry for running off like you did," Emmett ordered of Shawn as they walked over to us.

"Sorry, Mommy," Shawn apologized, looking contrite.

"It's alright," Rose accepted leaning down to give him a hug.

Just like that? She's going to let what he did go so easily? Where's the punishment? No wonder he thinks he can get away with running off! My parents would have grounded me from my favorite toys and probably scolded me for hours if I'd done something like that when I was little.

"I see you met, Bella," Edward said to Rose.

"I did, and I'm glad she's here. It's going to be nice to have someone besides you two to talk to," she stated causing Edward and Emmett to laugh.

"Come on, Honey, we should get home," Emmett suggested guiding her off the porch with Shawn in tow.

"It was really nice meeting you, Bella. I hope we can chat more later on," she offered sweetly.

"I'd like that." I smiled in return.

Edward stood next to me as we watched them walk down the sidewalk and into their own yard. I took a moment to look around the neighborhood and saw families in their yards mowing, washing cars, riding bikes, or simply playing with their kids at just about every home. Edward seemed like he didn't fit in here, being all alone.

"Be careful around Rose," Edward warned. "She's nice and all, but she's quite the gossip. She spreads rumors like wildfire around here."

"Thanks for the tip. I could kind of tell she was fishing for information," I admitted.

He turned and chuckled a little. "Did she ask you if I was gay?" he wondered, eyes wide. My head jerked to the side staring at him with a gaping mouth. He shook his head and laughed harder. "She's been fishing for information about my sex life since they moved here six months ago. She thinks because I live alone, I live in a family community, and I'm a social worker I have to be gay. I won't ever give her a straight answer though. I like watching her squirm."

"Are you gay?" I asked curiously.

"No," he laughed even harder.

"Then why _do_ you live in a family community all by yourself and work as a social worker?" I wondered.

"I actually moved into this house with two of my friends from college about three years ago. We didn't really look at the neighborhood when we moved in. We just saw it as a house we could all afford the rent in and a great place to have parties since it has a really nice deck and large backyard. A year and a half ago my friend Garrett moved to New York for a job, and Peter got married so they got their own place. I guess I just didn't want the hassle of moving again so I stayed," he explained.

"And the job?" I reminded.

He shrugged and smirked. "I guess I just like helping people. There isn't some scandalous reason for it."

"I remember you always being very helpful growing up also. I can't even count all the times Alice would beg you to drive us and all our friends somewhere or ask you to help us with our homework when your parents weren't around and you would do it without question. I was always jealous of Alice having a big brother. I wanted a sibling so badly but it was always just me. I think that's why I spent so much time at your house because I wanted your family to be mine."

He opened his mouth like he was going to say something but closed it again before he did.

"What?" I asked.

"It's nothing. I promised myself I wouldn't pry in your personal business."

"If you want to know something just ask. I don't want you letting me stay here if you have doubts."

"I don't have doubts about letting you stay. I'm just a little curious about something."

"Then ask me," I sighed, getting tired of him dancing around what he really wanted to know.

"Yesterday my mom was kind of filling me in on what happened to you and I'm curious if it's true," he began. "Did you really go to California to become a porn star?" He chuckled a little at the end like he thought it was a joke. "My mom even said you had Alice convinced to go with you before she found out what was really going on."

I dropped my head and walked back in the house. I sat on the couch and pulled my knees to my chest to hide from the shame I felt.

"I'm sorry, Bella. I shouldn't have asked you that. It's none of my business and it doesn't change anything. I'm not going to make you leave if you did," Edward assured.

"I didn't go there to become a porn star. I don't even know why someone would think that. Honestly, that uncle of Mike's was a joke. He had Mike believing he was this big shot director in Hollywood and had all these connections. I followed Mike down there because I thought I loved him. Alice didn't want me to leave without her. It was Alice's idea to go with us. She wanted to be a makeup artist and Mike had her convinced his uncle could hook her up. At the last minute she changed her mind and said this 'supposed' uncle of Mike's was making amateur sex videos, not movies. She tried to tell me not to go but I didn't listen. I loved Mike, and I trusted him. I still love him even after what he did to me," I cried, burying my face in my knees.

"What did he do?" he asked sitting down next to me.

I turned my head away and fought back the tears. "At first everything was great between us. His uncle was letting us stay free of charge at an apartment building he managed as long as we helped out with maintenance and cleaning. He was taking Mike around to supposedly meet all these important people. We were happy and free from our parents. We thought we had it all. It turns out his uncle was secretly recording Mike and I in intimate situations. I should have known something was up when suddenly Mike wanted to be more open and adventurous in our sex life. I thought it was just because we had the freedom, but it was because he was playing a part for his uncle. When I found the tape by accident while cleaning his uncle's apartment I was disgusted and I felt violated. So I left. With the little money I did have I checked into a cheap hotel and cried my eyes out for days. Finally, I called Mike and told him to meet me. I told him about what I found and he defended his uncle and made me feel even dirtier. He tried to tell me I knew all along what was going on, which I didn't. I couldn't believe he actually betrayed me like that, but he said it was how things were done in this business. You have to start out small and work your way up. I felt so used and I hated him. I told him to never talk to me again.

After that I just wanted to go home. I started walking and hitchhiked a little. Then I found out I was pregnant. I'd been sick to my stomach and feeling really funny for a few days but I thought it was just because of what happened. Out of curiosity I got a pregnancy test and it came up positive. I tried to call Mike and give him a second chance, begging him to come home with me. I really felt like he was just as much a victim in all this as I was. At least that's what I wanted to believe. I told him I was pregnant and he acted like he didn't care. It was like pouring even more salt into the wound. He made me feel like I wasn't good enough to be a mom. He told me I needed to get an abortion because he wasn't going to be responsible for my screw up. He told me I'd never be a good mom so there was no reason in even trying. I know I probably won't be a good mom but to hear him say it really hurt."

"Didn't you tell Alice that Mike was going into the army or something?" he asked.

"I did only because I was ashamed of what happened. I didn't want her or anyone else to know what really happened. I wanted it to look better than it really was," I sobbed.

"Bella," Edward sighed sympathetically while wrapping his arm around me to let me cry on his shoulder. "You don't have anything to be ashamed of. You didn't do anything wrong and in all honesty you could probably sue that asshole for filming you like he did. It's a violation of privacy and he can get in a lot of trouble for doing what he did."

"I don't want to sue him. I just want to forget it ever happened," I cried.

"Bella, Mike doesn't deserve you. You are much better than he will ever be. Don't ever let him, or anyone else for that matter, bring you down and make you feel like you aren't good enough. I've only been around you for two days and I can already tell you're going to be a great mom."

"You don't know anything about me," I countered sitting up and wiping my eyes.

"On the contrary, I know you're a very giving and caring person, you forgive far too easily, you are great around kids, you're stubborn as all hell, you lost the happiness you always had as a child somewhere along the lines, but most importantly, you care more about the baby you're carrying than you let on."

I stared into his eyes almost shocked at his observations of me. Was he right? Part of me didn't believe him.

"You're going to be a great mom, Bella. Don't let anyone tell you differently," he assured.

I ducked my head and sighed emotionally.

"I think we need some pizza." He hopped off the couch and went to get a stack of takeout menus and the phone. "What do you like on your pizza?" he asked in an attempt to lighten the mood and change the subject.

"You eat out a lot, don't you?" I asked, noticing the large pile of takeout menus he had.

"Well, as you can see from my breakfast fiasco, I can't cook. Eating out or eating whatever my mom sends home with me each week is the extent of my cooking knowledge," he joked.

"I can cook," I informed him. "I'm actually pretty good at it."

"Really?" he asked with an enthusiastic smile. "Then I think we may have found the first thing you can do to help out around here. I love home cooked meals. It's probably the one thing I miss the most from living at home."

"I can do that," I assured him excitedly. It was kind of funny how cooking suddenly made me excited. I think it was more just the fact that I got to contribute something. Even if it was something as simple as cooking a meal, it was something at least. I had a purpose.

"Tomorrow I'll take you shopping and you can get whatever it is you need to cook with, but for tonight I think we need some pizza and a good movie," he suggested.

I giggled at his enthusiasm and his attempt at making me feel better. "Sounds good. Thank you, Edward."

**Thanks for reading :)**

**A couple more quick things: **

**I entered The Man In Uniform Contest. I was supposed to be a judge but with not enough stories to be judged when the deadline ended, the dates were extended and I dropped out of judging to write something for it instead. I'd appreciate if everyone went to read the entries and even voted for your favorites. All the stories will be posted on Saturday, August 16th (at least I hope) and I believe voting starts that day as well. The link is on my profile. Thank you :)**

**Also, as I mentioned on my profile, some friends and I started a new fanfiction awards called the Emerging Swans. We just got the blog and twitter sites up and running so please go check them out and consider nominating some of your favorite stories for an award. We really want to recognize the slightly unknown authors who truly deserve to be recognized for their writing and storytelling talent. Nominations begin in August.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Just a quick note - I'm sorry I didn't respond to reviews from the last chapter. My boys had summer camp all last week, which I was a leader for. Then this weekend I had a Cub Scout family campout, which was disastrous. I'm trying to get caught back up with my stories and will try very hard to respond to reviews for this chapter if anyone has any questions. **

**Also, nominations for one-shots and short stories in The Emerging Swan Awards opens today so please go nominate your favorite stories. I really want this to be a huge success for those authors who deserve some notice. The link is on my profile.**

**Thanks venomousgal for all your hard work on making my story readable. You have no idea how much I appreciate all you do for me.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or the characters involved.**

Bella had been staying with me for almost a week and everything seemed to be going really well. We were getting along great. I actually liked having her around and coming home to someone every night. We laughed and joked while we watched TV or ate dinner. She was slowly becoming the same fun-loving, happy girl I remembered from my childhood.

She was still suffering from morning sickness, but it usually passed after the first couple of hours of the day. I discovered that she really enjoyed cooking, and every night when I came home from work she'd have an amazing meal waiting for me. She was even cleaning the house and doing the dishes and the laundry. I kept insisting she didn't have to, but she said she needed to keep herself busy, and she wanted to do something to help me out. It was strange how every time I made a comment about how clean something looked, thanked her for doing my laundry for me, or told her how good the food tasted it made her brighten up and smile so happily. If doing those little things made Bella happy, then she was welcome to do them. Coming home to a warm, home cooked, meal with clean laundry laid out on my bed, and the house in immaculate condition was nice.

I had Bella set up with a case worker I trusted and knew very well. Sarah was able to obtain state granted medical insurance for Bella and was looking around to find her a part time job. The problem was finding a job Bella could do while pregnant and something she could take some time off of once she had her baby.

In the meantime, Bella needed to see a doctor to get checked out. She chose a doctor from the list I gave her and made an appointment for late Friday afternoon.

While we ate dinner the night before her appointment she seemed fidgety and almost nervous. I assumed she would be when she went to her first appointment.

"Edward," Bella whispered my name, interrupting my chewing.

I looked up at her from across the table and saw a worried almost scared expression on her face.

"What's wrong?"

She cleared her throat and cast her eyes down to her lap, where I could tell she was wringing her hands together under the table. "I have my first doctor appointment tomorrow," she reminded me.

"I know," I replied, not really getting the point of why she was telling me this.

"Well… the thing is… I could take a bus to the doctor's office, but I'd kind of like it if someone came with me. I'm a little nervous about the whole thing."

I thought about it for a moment, trying to understand what she was getting at. "Are you saying you want me to come with you to your appointment?" I questioned apprehensively.

Her eyes were still downcast, and she refused to look up at me. "Sort of," she softly answered.

I took a deep breath in and sat back in my chair to think it over. This wasn't really what I had in mind when I offered to let her stay with me for a while. I did tell her I'd drive her to her appointments, but I didn't really plan to go in with her.

"You don't have to if you don't want to. I just thought I'd ask," she quickly defended, giving me a way out if I wanted it. "I would have preferred if Alice came with me, but she lives so far away and well… I'm sure you're aware how much she hates hospitals."

I laughed and nodded my head. "I always found that odd since our dad is a doctor and we pretty much grew up in the halls of a hospital," I said.

Bella giggled and finally raised her eyes to meet mine. "I know. She used to tell me she hated when her dad would come home from work because he always had that smell on him. I guess he had to take a shower the minute he got home before she would go near him."

"He still does," I admitted.

We snickered for a few minutes before lapsing off into an awkward silence. I knew even if I didn't say anything she wouldn't press the matter and keep asking. I could just pretend she never brought it up and let her go alone. However, as I looked across the table I saw a girl who just wanted someone to share the experience with, and I couldn't deny her.

"Alright," I agreed nonchalantly taking another bite of my food.

"Huh?" she questioned with a confused look.

"I'll go with you to the doctor. You're going to need someone to drive you anyway, right?" I added. The grin on her face was enough to tell me I was doing the right thing.

"Thank you," she expressed graciously.

The following day when I got off work I picked Bella up at the house and drove her into the city to meet the doctor she had chosen. As we walked in, I could tell Bella was very nervous from the heavy sighs and lip biting she was doing. She checked in with the receptionist and was handed a clipboard with paperwork for her to fill out. We sat in a far corner of the waiting room while she completed the paperwork, continuing to sigh and bite her lip, which was now joined by the tapping of the pen against the clipboard and her foot bouncing up and down.

I finally reached over and rubbed her shoulder affectionately in an attempt to calm her nerves. The constant tapping of the pen against the clipboard was starting to drive me crazy. "Everything will be fine, Bella. There's no reason to be nervous." She smiled weakly up at me, attempting to calm down a little.

"Isabella Swan?" the nurse called from the door. Bella grabbed my hand and squeezed it so tight as her entire body tensed.

"Do you still want me to go with you?" I asked.

"Could you?"

"Sure," I agreed, climbing to my feet and helping her up.

We walked slowly towards the nurse who smiled at Bella and led her back to a room.

"Hi, I'm Emily and I'll be your nurse for today. How are you feeling?" the nurse asked.

"Um, I guess I'm ok. I still get sick in the mornings," Bella answered as she climbed up on the table.

"That's perfectly normal. Nothing to be concerned about," Emily assured. She took the paperwork from Bella and added it to her file before jotting a few things down on a piece of paper. "Now, what I'm going to do is take your blood pressure and ask a few questions then I'm going to have you do a urine sample down the hall. Once you get back, Doctor Tanner will want you in a gown so she can do an internal exam and an ultrasound."

"Okay," Bella said in a timid voice.

After asking a series of questions about the pregnancy the nurse grabbed the blood pressure cuff and started pumping the cuff up around Bella's arm and studying her watch. "Looks good." She wrote down the results in Bella's file before pulling out a gown and a little cup from the cupboard. "Every time you come we'll want you to give us a urine sample. The bathroom is down the hall and right around the corner on the left. Inside you'll see a little cupboard that you'll put the cup in when you're done."

"Alright, thank you," Bella murmured.

"Doctor Tanner will be in shortly."

The nurse left the room and Bella hopped off the table to go to the bathroom. I was left in the room alone wondering how exactly I could get out of this. I wasn't going to stay for the internal examination; that was for sure.

A few minutes later Bella returned to the room looking even more nervous than before. Her eyes aimlessly darted around the room refusing to look at me or say a word. "I think I'll wait right outside," I suggested. "If you need me for anything just call."

"Okay," she sighed in relief. I walked out and leaned up against the wall outside her room letting out my own sigh of relief.

When the doctor walked past and saw me standing against the wall she gave me a peculiar look like she wasn't quite sure why I was there. She walked into Bella's room and greeted her kindly before shutting the door. As much as I wanted to support Bella during this, I didn't want to be in there when she had her exam. At least I came with her so she didn't have to come alone. That had to count for something. I figured after a few minutes Bella would walk out and we could go home.

Suddenly the door opened, and the doctor peaked out instead of Bella. "Edward?" she questioned. I stood away from the wall and turned to look at her. "Would you like to come in to see the ultrasound?"

"Um… I don't know… does Bella…"

"It's fine, Edward," Bella called. I didn't want to intrude or make Bella feel uncomfortable in any way, but she said it was okay. The doctor smiled and gestured for me to come in. I hesitantly walked inside the door and stood a few feet away. Bella was laid out on the table with the gown pulled up exposing her stomach with a sheet across her bottom half. I felt very out of place and like I was intruding Bella's privacy being in the room with her like this.

"Have a seat, Edward," the doctor ordered, gesturing towards the stool sitting next to the table. I slowly walked over and lowered myself down beside Bella. She smiled over at me with an excited look on her face. I smiled back trying to share her enthusiasm.

Doctor Tanner grabbed the ultrasound piece and pressed it against Bella's stomach while watching the monitor.

"Is this the first child for both of you?" Doctor Tanner asked.

"Oh… uh… we aren't… he's not…" Bella stuttered.

"I'm not the father. Bella and I are just friends," I explained.

"Oh, I see. I apologize for the mix-up. I just assumed since you were here this was your baby."

"Edward is a really great friend," Bella added. "He's one of the nicest guys I've ever met. I don't know what I would do without him." I nearly blushed from her compliment.

The doctor smiled and nodded her head before turning back to the screen. A few seconds later she turned the monitor so we had a better look.

"There it is," she pointed out a small peanut shaped blob on the screen.

"Oh my gosh," Bella gasped. "That's my baby? He's so little."

"He's going to be growing quite a bit in the next seven months," Doctor Tanner explained. "From what I can tell, you're about nine weeks along and your due date is January second."

As we watched the monitor the little peanut shaped blob moved as if it was rolling over on its side to face us.

"Do you see the heartbeat?" Doctor Tanner asked, pointing out the steady flutter on the screen and turning on the sound for us to hear.

I sat there staring at the screen and listening to the rhythmic sound of the heartbeat in complete awe. I'd never seen or heard anything so amazing in my entire life.

"Can you tell whether it's a boy or girl yet?" Bella asked with a sob in her throat. I peeled my eyes away from the screen to look at her and saw tears flowing down her face. I quickly grabbed her hand and rubbed my thumb across her knuckles in a comforting way. She looked over at me and smiled as she wiped her tears away.

"Not yet. It's still a little early to get a good view but in just a couple weeks we'll do a full ultrasound examination. By then we should be able to tell," Doctor Tanner explained. She pushed a few buttons and took some measurements of the baby before removing the ultrasound wand from Bella's abdomen. She reached around to the back of the ultrasound machine and pulled out a couple pictures. "These are for you." Doctor Tanner handed Bella the two ultrasound pictures and helped her up to a sitting position. "Everything looks great, Bella. Just remember to eat well and get lots of rest. I'll need to see you back in a month, but if at any time you feel like something isn't right, or you just have questions, feel free to call and we'll help you out."

"Okay. Thank you, Doctor Tanner," Bella said.

"It was very nice meeting you, Bella. I look forward to seeing you throughout your pregnancy."

Doctor Tanner walked out closing the door behind her. Bella sat there with a huge grin on her face staring at the ultrasound pictures the doctor had given her like she was examining every little speck.

"I'll go wait back outside so you can get dressed?" I offered not waiting for a reply, before I walked out and leaned back against the wall like I had earlier.

A few minutes later Bella walked out still staring at the pictures. "Ready to go?" I asked. She nodded her head, barely acknowledging I said anything. I couldn't help but laugh and shake my head as we walked towards the door. The amusement she got from those two little pictures of what looked like a small peanut was the strangest thing I'd ever seen.

All during the drive home she stared at those pictures sighing contently and even letting a small giggle slip a couple times.

"Do you like Doctor Tanner?"

"Yeah, she's really nice and she wasn't judgmental to my situation."

"That's good. I'm glad you found a doctor you like."

"I made stuff for tacos for dinner tonight," she informed changing the subject. "They should only take a few minutes to heat up."

"Tacos sound really good."

"I've been craving Mexican food the last couple of days. I even made my own refried beans," she added with a pleased smile.

"Are pregnancy cravings already kicking in?" I asked with a chuckle. "Pretty soon you'll be sending me out to get you pickles and ice cream."

She slapped my arm with the back of her hand causing me to flinch and laugh even harder. "Don't make fun of me," she ordered with a giggle in her voice.

"I wasn't making fun of you. I just think it's strange how pregnant women have cravings like pickles and ice cream."

"Well I don't have cravings for either one of those," she corrected. "The thought of eating pickles actually makes me want to puke."

"Please don't do it in the car," I begged playfully.

"Then don't talk about pickles," she countered.

"I promise, I won't say another word."

"I have had some strange cravings though," she explained after a small silent pause.

"Oh yeah, like what?" I wondered.

"Well, besides the Mexican food, I love the smell of freshly cut grass. The other day when you were mowing I went outside just so I could smell the grass." I laughed uncontrollably at her reveal. She got very quiet for a moment and ducked her head away. "I also crave the smell of your cologne," she admitted with barely a whisper. A huge grin spread across my face but I didn't know how to respond. "I know it sounds crazy but there's something about it I really like. I found myself smelling your shirts today while I was doing laundry. I didn't even realize I was doing it at first. I talked to Doctor Tanner about it and she said it's perfectly normal. The first trimester there are aversions to smells and also attractions to smells. She said later on I'll probably have more food cravings once the morning sickness wears off. Do you think I'm weird for being attracted to your cologne?"

"No," I assured. "It is strange, but I guess I'd rather have you be attracted to it, than have an aversion to it."

"I promise I won't start sniffing you or something crazy like that," she assured causing me to once again start laughing.

"It's really not a big deal, Bella. Don't worry about it."

We drove in a comfortable silence a little longer before she spoke again. "It's such a strange feeling knowing this little living human being is inside of me," she said in a somber voice staring down at the picture once again. I glanced back and forth between her and the road trying to read her mood. "Why would anyone want me as a mother? I can't give this baby anything. I can't even give it a father."

"Everything will work out, Bella. You never know, maybe Mike will come back in a few weeks or even a few months and you two can work things out."

"Yeah," she agreed, sounding unconvinced.

"Would you like to call him, just to let him know about your appointment today?" I asked.

"Could I?" she asked hopeful.

"Yeah, no problem," I agreed, pulling my cell phone out of my pocket and handing it over to her. She dialed the number with an excited look on her face.

"Hi, Mike, this is Bella. I'm sure you don't recognize the number, which is probably why you didn't answer. I just wanted to tell you I went to the doctor today. I got to see the heartbeat and see the baby moving inside of me. I wish you could be here to see it too. It's amazing, Mike. I know if you would come home and experience this with me you'd be happy. We could be happy here just being together and being parents. I want you to call me. Please?" She hung up just as I was pulling into the driveway. I turned off the car and sat there silently with her. She looked so upset. I reached over and rubbed her shoulder trying to comfort her.

"I'm sure he's busy doing something," she excused. "He'll call me back. Is it okay if he calls me back?"

"Yeah, it's fine. Don't worry about it." I honestly didn't understand why she still wanted this guy who betrayed her and hurt her in such an extreme way. It kind of made me sick now knowing what he had done to her. He didn't deserve her forgiveness or her love. Unfortunately, being in the business I'm in, I've seen this a thousand times before. Young girls, just like Bella fall for jerks like Mike, and for whatever reason can't let them go no matter how much they hurt them. It was probably the worst part of my job watching a woman go back to an abusive relationship, whether it was physical, emotional, or mental. These girls were so desperate for someone to love them and care about them they'd take whatever they could get. Bella fit this category perfectly. She left her family, she left her entire life behind for some guy, he manipulated her into thinking she was doing the right thing and she had no other option, and now he was her entire world. I treated Bella like I would any other client. I had to be patient with her and not push my opinions on her. All I could hope was that she'd eventually see the light and realize she could do much better without him. My job was to be there to support her in every way I possibly could.

"I'm going to owe you so much after all you've done for me," she joked trying to lighten the mood.

"You don't owe me a thing. I like having you around. It gets lonely living by myself. I don't think I've laughed so much in my entire lifetime as I have in the last week."

She looked up at me, trying to force a smile. "Thanks."

"Come on, let's go eat and cure that craving for Mexican," I suggested playfully.

We got out of the car and went into the house. Bella quickly started preparing stuff in the kitchen trying to keep herself busy. I had a feeling she was on the verge of tears after Mike didn't answer her call. I'm sure every minute that went by and he didn't return her call was twisting the knife even further into her broken heart.

As she prepared dinner I went into my room to change my clothes. Sitting on my bed were two piles of clean clothes and my shirts freshly ironed hanging on hangers ready to be put away. My bed was made up with fresh sheets. Everything around the house was in perfect order. Unfortunately, tomorrow I had to go home and bring my laundry for my mom to do. This was going to be awkward. My family didn't know Bella was staying with me yet. I kind of wanted to keep it that way for a while. Knowing how they felt about her already made me really not want them to know she was here. It's not like I wanted to hide her, I just didn't want my family or anyone else to get the wrong idea. My family could be a little harsh at times.

After putting my laundry away and changing into some sweatpants and a t-shirt, I went out to the kitchen. Bella had already set the table and had everything heating in the oven or on the stove.

"It should be a few more minutes before dinner is ready," she informed me.

"Alright." I walked to the kitchen and grabbed a beer from the fridge popping it open and taking a huge swig. "So, I'm going into Forks to see my family tomorrow. I probably won't be home until late," I explained.

"Okay," she replied, not meeting my gaze.

"I haven't exactly told any of them you're staying here. I just don't want them to get the wrong idea or to make you feel bad for anything," I admitted, sheepishly.

"I see," she deadpanned while shredding cheese with a cheese grater.

"It's not like I'm trying to hide you or that I don't want you here. I really do like having you here. I like the company, and I like all you do for me even though you don't have to. It's just my family is… well… you know…"

"Complicated," she finished.

"Yeah," I agreed. "My mom has always done everything for me, and if she thought I didn't need her anymore, I think she'd be really upset."

Suddenly Bella stopped shredding the cheese and looked up at me with wide eyes. "I'm sorry. I forgot you go home on the weekends with your laundry. I was just nervous about the doctor appointment and needed to keep myself busy today," she apologized with a heavy sigh. "I feel horrible. I didn't mean to do all your laundry."

"Bella," I chuckled. "Will you stop? I don't care if you do my laundry. You don't have to, but it's okay if you do. That's not what I was getting at. All I'm trying to say is for right now, I don't think it would be a good idea for my family to know you're staying here."

"I understand. There's no reason for anyone to know since I'll be on my own soon enough. I'll get things figured out and get out of your hair," she replied.

"It's really not a problem if you want to stay, Bella. Like I said before, I like having you around. It's nice having someone to talk to instead of being by myself all the time. I'm sure Rose would be upset if you left too," I reminded.

She smiled and even giggled a little. "Rose is fun to hang out with, but she does like to gossip. She's still fishing for information about where you and I stand. She thinks we're lying to her about not being in a relationship, which is fueling her theory of you being gay when I tell her there's nothing going on between us."

I laughed and shook my head. "Rose is a hoot. She has no excitement in her own life so she's got to create it with others."

"She has been a huge help, though. She's had a child before so she's easy to talk to and get advice from."

"I know. Just be careful with what you tell her. She'll use anything to fuel her gossip," I cautioned.

"I have been. I've really only talked to her about the pregnancy and when she asks personal questions I try to avoid answering or just give her a vague reply."

I nodded my head at her reply then walked to the table to sit down and finish my beer. A few minutes later she carried the plates with the tacos and the bowl of freshly made refried beans to the table. Everything smelled and looked delicious. We dished up our plates and ate in a comfortable silence. I had a feeling something was bothering her, and I was pretty sure it had to do with Mike not calling her back. I know if she had her way she'd be with him right now, and would have had him at the doctor appointment instead of me.

"This is really good, Bella. I'm afraid I might end up eating more than I should," I admitted taking a second helping. She smiled proudly as she watched me pile more on my plate.

"Is there anything you want me to do while you're gone tomorrow?" she asked.

"No, you do too much already. Just take it easy tomorrow. Sleep in and just relax for once."

"I don't know if I know how to relax," she admitted. "I like being busy. I could go into the city and start looking for a job? The caseworker you set me up with doesn't really seem to have any leads on work. If I go out on my own I bet I could find something."

"Sounds like a good idea. I'm sure if you ask Rose she'd be willing to drive you into town," I suggested.

"I'll ask her tomorrow morning. If not I can always take the bus."

"I'd feel better if you had someone with you," I admitted.

She raised an eyebrow at me like I said the wrong thing. I'm sure she thought I had no right to tell her what to do, which she was probably right about, but I didn't want her to be all alone.

"You can't tell me what to do, Edward," she argued. "First you say I'm not allowed to tell anyone I'm staying here especially my best friend, then you try to control who I talk to and what I talk to them about, and now you're trying to tell me I'm not allowed to go into town by myself."

"I'm not trying to tell you what to do. I just think it would be easier if you had someone with you. It's supposed to rain tomorrow and you don't want to be at a bus stop in the rain," I offered as an excuse.

"Like I said, I'll ask Rose. But if she can't I'll be fine on my own." She angrily stood from her seat and walked to the kitchen, placing her plate in the sink with a loud clank.

"Okay," I said more to myself than to her. I realized I wasn't going to get anywhere by making suggestions for her safety.

After I was done eating I offered to do the dishes so she could relax and I could hopefully make amends. While I did the dishes, I caught her glancing at my phone quite a bit. I felt bad for her. I could tell Mike not calling her back was really bothering her and probably part of the reason why she got so upset by what I said earlier. She didn't say a word to me for the rest of the night, making it clear she was still mad at me for my big mouth.

She went to bed really early and looked so sad when she went to her room. I wanted to do something to cheer her up and apologize for the way I acted. Knowing how happy the ultrasound pictures made her I decided I would do something special for her with those. I left later that night and went to a local store to look for a frame. I thought maybe she could put the pictures in a frame so they wouldn't get bent up or destroyed.

After searching around and not finding anything that would work, I ended up in the baby section. For some reason I couldn't help looking around just to see what they had. It was crazy all the stuff a baby needed to survive. I got very overwhelmed within minutes.

Just as I was about to leave the area, I came across a baby book sitting out of place on top of a pile of blankets. I picked it up and thumbed through it, coming to realize it had a section for just about every milestone throughout the pregnancy and the first five years of life for the baby. There were even spots to put ultrasound pictures and footprints when the baby was born. It was a neutral color with a safari animal print. It was perfect… I hoped anyway. I went to the register and quickly paid for the baby book before heading home.

In the morning, I was up well before Bella so I could get an early start for my journey to Forks. I gathered up all the dirty laundry I could find and put it in the back of my car along with the dishes my mom had sent with me the weekend prior. Before I left I placed the baby book on the counter with a sticky note saying 'I'm sorry'.

The drive out to Forks was uneventful and rather routine. It wasn't much different than any other weekend I went back to my parent's home. As I pulled into the driveway I saw Alice heading out with her new friend Jessica. I didn't like Jessica much, in my opinion she was the bad influence on Alice, not Bella. Ever since Bella left Alice had been hanging out with Jessica.

"Hey, Edward," Alice greeted.

"Edward," Jessica cooed flirtatiously while she presumptuously wrapped her arms around my neck to give me a hug. "It's been forever since I've seen you. Why don't you come back home more often so we can hang out?"

"I live and work in Seattle," I answered, removing her arms from around my neck and placing them at her sides.

"We're going to a party tonight. You should come with us," Jessica offered.

"No thanks," I laughed. "I don't exactly hang out with teenagers."

"I'm not a teenager," she tried to convince me, her bottom lip pouting out. I scoffed at her answer before returning to my car to get my basket of laundry. Ignoring Jessica I walked past her and Alice towards the house, carrying my laundry inside and placing it on the washing machine in the laundry room. Right after I entered the house Alice and Jessica wandered back in and made themselves comfortable in the kitchen.

"I thought you were leaving?" my mom asked them.

"We decided to stay a little longer," Jessica explained. I rolled my eyes at her response but continued to ignore them.

"Hi, Mom," I greeted giving her a peck on the cheek.

"Hi, Hon. How have you been this week?"

"Great actually. It's been a really good week," I answered taking a place at the bar next to Alice.

"Oh, how so?" she asked skeptically.

"Nothing specific, it's just been a good week."

"I'm glad to hear it," she said placing her hand on mine in a warm gesture. "Do you have any special requests of what you'd like me to send home with you this week?"

"Uh… you really don't need to, Mom. I'm fine." She stared at me with questioning eyes like she didn't understand what I just said.

"What do you mean you'll be fine?" she questioned.

"I'm just saying you don't need to spend your entire day making me food. I can survive on my own," I tried to backpedal. As much as I liked my mom's cooking and wouldn't mind if she sent something home with me I didn't want to upset Bella any more than I already had by taking over something she obviously enjoyed doing.

"I really don't mind, Edward. You've never cared before," she pointed out.

Sighing in defeat, I gave in. "Fine, Mom. I just don't want you to overwork yourself for me."

She smiled sweetly and brushed my cheek with her hand. "I could never overwork myself for you. You're my son and I enjoy doing stuff for you."

I nodded my head giving her free reign to do whatever she felt like she needed to do. She walked to the laundry room to start my laundry, as I ran my fingers through my hair over-thinking how I was going to handle bringing food home.

"Edward?" my dad questioned in a confused tone as he walked into the kitchen. "You're back early today. Usually you're not here until later in the afternoon."

"Well there's supposed to be a storm coming in later today so I want to get home before it gets too dark," I explained.

"Oh yeah, the storm is expected to hit this area pretty hard. I'm looking at spending the night at the hospital," he said with a grumpy look on his face. I knew my dad loved being a doctor, but sometimes I think he got burned out from it. Living in a small town and knowing everyone personally made it even harder. He hated those days when he would have to go to someone he knew well and tell them their loved one had been in a car accident or had a heart attack and didn't make it. My dad was a very compassionate person so he took on being the comfort for the people of our community much more than the job ever required. Everyone we know tells me that's where I got my compassion from. I actually don't think I'm nearly as compassionate as my father or even as closely supportive of people like he is. I'm just trained to be a certain way for the people who need it. Unlike my father I could never live in a small town where I know everyone personally and had to help them with their struggles that they would probably rather keep secret. I liked living in the city where every case was different, but I didn't necessarily take my work home with me every night. Well, except for now with Bella. But with her it was different.

"Is this really all the laundry you have?" my mom questioned, peaking her head from around the corner.

"Yeah, why?"

"It's barely a full load. Usually you have at least two loads for me to do."

"I guess I just didn't wear much this week," I reasoned, shrugging my shoulders. Alice and Jessica snickered next to me after I said I hadn't worn much. My mom gave me a strange look before going back to my laundry.

"So how's work, Edward?" my dad asked.

"Good, nothing real exciting, just the same old thing," I replied.

"You should take us into Seattle to go shopping, Edward," Alice suggested.

I rolled my eyes and turned my head away. "Yeah, sure, Alice."

"Edward?" my mom questioned with a concerned expression. Everyone's attention fell upon my mother while she walked back into the kitchen. "Whose are these?" She held up a pair of red panties, which I'm sure were Bella's and had somehow gotten mixed up in my laundry. My stomach tightened in knots at the predicament I was suddenly in. How in the hell was I going to get out of this one? "Are you seeing someone?"

"No," I gasped. Alice and Jessica giggled next to me and even made whistling noises.

"Way to go, Son," my dad congratulated, patting me on the back.

"Who is she, Edward? When do we get to meet her?" my mom wondered excitedly.

"Mom, can you just give them to me and not make a big deal out of this?" I pleaded reaching for the panties. I was mortified by their reaction and seriously wanted to crawl into a hole and die.

"I would like to meet this girl if she's important enough to you to leave her panties behind."

"I'm not seeing anyone," I insisted.

"Then who is she?" Alice asked butting into the conversation. My head fell into my hands trying to hide away from the awkward moment.

"It's no one. Just don't worry about it."

"This is why you don't want me to make you anything to eat and why you barely have any laundry," my mom theorized. "Is this woman living with you?"

"Mom, please don't," I begged.

"If you don't tell me who she is I'll just have to drive into Seattle to meet her myself," my mom warned with a grin on her face. My mom had been pestering me for months about dating more. I'm sure the thought of me living with someone thrilled her. However, if she knew who I was living with I'm sure she'd think differently.

"Fine!" I exclaimed in defeat. "Since you're all so nosey, it's Bella Swan. There are you happy now?" Feeling frustrated and angry I stood from the stool and walked outside practically slamming the door behind me. I plopped down to the step and dropped my face into my hands. This wasn't how I wanted them to find out about Bella living with me.

After a few minutes my dad slowly walked out and sat down next to me. "Bella Swan, huh?" he questioned.

"Dad, it's not what you think," I assured. "She's pregnant and she needed somewhere to stay. I offered to let her stay with me for a little while. There's nothing going on between us. It's strictly a roommate type of thing. She just needed help and I couldn't turn my back on her like everyone else was."

He patted me on the back and nodded his head. "I understand. You've always been one to want to help everyone and I know why you did what you did. I'm not judging your decision in any way. I think you did the right thing for that girl. I just don't want you to get caught up in her troubles."

"She doesn't have troubles. She's just misunderstood and in a really bad place in her life right now."

"Well just be careful, okay," he ordered.

"I am. Everything is fine."

"Your mother is not very happy about this news. It might be a good idea if you went inside to talk to her about it and try to explain what's going on," he suggested.

I sighed frustratingly. "Do I have to?" I complained. He laughed and nodded his head. Reluctantly, we both stood up and walked back into the house.

"I can't believe you're sleeping with my ex-best friend," Alice whined scrunching her face up in repulsion. "How sick can you possibly be?"

"God, Alice! I'm not sleeping with her. Don't be ridiculous. She's just living with me until she can find a job and a place of her own. You, of all people, should know she didn't do anything wrong."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she questioned placing her hands on her hips and raising an eyebrow.

"I think you know exactly what it means. It's no wonder Bella doesn't want to be friends with you anymore after you backstabbed her by spreading lies about her being a porn star."

"I didn't spread lies," she countered angrily. "I looked up that guy and found out who he really was."

"But was Bella going there for that or was she going there to be with her boyfriend? What you have mom believing isn't the truth and you know that," I challenged. Her jaw clenched and her eyes narrowed in anger. "I know you were upset about her leaving but to spread nasty rumors about her was probably a lot worse than what she did. And don't try to act all innocent because I know you were planning to go too without being forced like you told mom."

"You don't know anything," she shot back, crossing her arms against her chest.

"Don't I?" I could see Alice's anger rising by the second. She knew I was right and I knew the truth about what really happened. She had no way to argue her way out of this.

"Would you let me live with you if I ran away from home?" Jessica asked cutting into the argument I was having with Alice.

"No," I assured her with a disgusted look on my face. I walked past them and up the stairs to where my mom was pacing her bedroom floor.

"Mom," I called, softly.

"I can't believe you, Edward. After all that girl has done you're allowing her to live with you? Is it just about the sex?"

God, Mom!" I exclaimed, horrified by the question. I turned my head away, uncomfortable even looking at her after being asked such a ridiculous question.

"There are so many other women out there who would be a much better choice for you. Not that girl. If this is about sex I hope you're using protection. You have no idea where that girl has been," she sneered.

"Mom!" I shouted, trying to nip this in the bud. "Just stop. I'm not sleeping with her. I never have and never will. Did you forget she's pregnant?"

"I sure hope you're telling me the truth for your own sake. You need to ask her to leave," she ordered.

I rolled my eyes and sighed in frustration. "Mom you don't know the whole story. You have no idea what really happened or what Bella has been through. All she wanted was someone to believe her and not turn their back on her. You jumped to conclusions based off of rumors instead of asking her directly what happened. It's not a very motherly thing to do."

"It wasn't a rumor, Edward. I heard it directly from your sister," she argued.

"Yeah, and Alice is such a great source of information. Did you ever stop to think maybe Alice was lying to make herself look better?" I questioned, dryly.

"Are you trying to say you believe what that girl said over your own sister?" she asked, gasping incredulously.

"Yeah, Mom, I am. Bella isn't a bad person and never did anything wrong. She was the victim. Why don't you focus on what Alice is doing right now instead of what you _think_ Bella did?" I slammed the door once again and stormed down the stairs. I shoved past Alice and Jessica going straight into the laundry room. I opened up the washing machine and pulled out all my damp clothes throwing them into my laundry bag and stomping out of the house. I shoved my stuff into the back of my car and climbed into the front seat. Just as I was starting up my car I saw my dad on the porch mouthing the words he'd talk to her.

During the whole drive home, all I could think about was how fucked up this was. Bella was mad at me for trying to tell her what to do, my mom was mad at me for allowing Bella to live with me, and my sister was upset because I called her out on her lies. My dad was the only neutral party in the whole situation.

I almost didn't even want to go home. Unfortunately, I had nowhere else to go. I couldn't risk making anyone else mad at me for doing what I thought was right. What I was doing was the right thing…I hoped.

**Alright, I know you are all probably going to hate Esme and Alice even more than you already did but I promise they will get better. They just need a dose of reality and to find out what really happened. There's a lot none of them know yet and will be revealed eventually. Or if you'd rather hate them, that's fine too. I know it's pretty easy to hate them with the way they're acting. :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I need to thank my beta, Venomousgal for beta'ing this chapter, despite being sick. She's amazing and truly didn't have to do this while being sick. Everyone should thank her for making sure this chapter got done on time.**

**There is an important message at the end of this chapter so please read it. I hope no one will be mad at me.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or characters involved. No copyright infringement intended.**

In the morning when I woke up I laid in bed longer than I usually did, listening carefully for Edward to leave the house. I felt bad for the way I behaved the night before but I had a lot of emotions running through me on top of the pregnancy hormones. Those two things didn't mix very well. I probably made more out of what Edward said than I really should have, but I just couldn't help it. I couldn't face Edward now, after what I did and I was a little embarrassed by how I reacted. I just hoped he didn't take it too personally. I really had no right to get mad at him for trying to help me. He'd already done far more for me than any person should. I owed him so much.

Once I knew for sure that Edward had left for the day, I crawled out of bed and took a quick shower. I changed into a pair of dark jeans and a cream colored blouse. It really wasn't much since all I brought back from California with me was a small backpack with a few clothes, but it was the nicest outfit I had. I pulled my hair back in a ponytail and put on a little lip gloss to try and look a little nicer. I needed to make a good impression if I was going to be searching for a job.

After I felt like I was about as good as I could possibly get, I walked out of the bathroom and towards the kitchen, as I wanted to grab a bagel before I left for the day. While waiting for my bagel to toast, my eye caught sight of something bright in color on the counter. I walked over to it and saw a small book with a safari animal print on the cover. Stuck on top of it was a sticky note saying 'I'm sorry'. Confused by what it was, I picked it up and thumbed through it. Tears sprung to my eyes as I realized it was a baby book.

_Edward bought me a baby book? __Why couldn't all guys be as great as he was? __I definitely wouldn't be in the mess I'm in now if they were._

I ended up burning my bagel because all I wanted to do was look through the baby book. I grabbed a pen and started filling in a few things that had already happened. Everything else I was supposed to do that day became an afterthought and for the first time since finding out I was pregnant I let myself just get lost in the experience. All I wanted to do was fill out that book.

After nearly two hours of sitting at the counter looking through the book and very slowly eating a fresh, unburned, bagel, I reluctantly pulled away and decided to go see Rose to do what I had originally planned to do this day. I needed to find a job. I had to find some way to take care of myself and my baby. As much as I appreciated everything Edward had done for me, I didn't want to depend on him for everything. I left the book on the counter and grabbed my coat before leaving the house to walk the short distance to Rose and Emmett's house.

Rose answered the door still dressed in her pajamas. "Hi, Bella. What can I do for you?"

"I was actually going to see if you were free today to go into the city, but if you're not it's fine," I replied, shyly.

"Are you kidding? I'll do anything to get out of this house for the day," she expressed, her eyes lighting up with excitement. "Come on in." I walked through the door and followed her into the living room. Shawn was sitting on the floor with his eyes glued to a video game he was playing while Emmett sat on the couch thumbing through a Sports Illustrated magazine. Rose sat down next Emmett and I sat down across from them on an oversized arm chair.

"I don't think I've ever seen him sit so still," I said referring to Shawn sitting so peacefully playing his game.

Rose sighed dramatically. "It's the only thing that'll ever work to keep him calm for a while. I hate letting him play video games all day but sometimes we need a little peace and quiet in this house."

I laughed. "I can only imagine."

"You said you wanted to go into the city today. What did you have in mind?" Rose asked, rubbing her hands together.

"Well I'm actually hoping to find a job somewhere. Edward introduced me to someone he works with who was supposed to help me find one but she really hasn't had any leads on anything. I want to go out and find something for myself and not wait around for her to find something for me. Edward thought it would be a good idea if I asked you to drive me since there's a storm coming in," I explained.

"Sure, I can do that," Rose agreed, turning towards Emmett. "Babe, you can look after Shawn today, right? You don't have any plans to go anywhere, do you?"

"No, we'll be fine. Go on and have a good day," Emmett replied, leaning over to kiss Rose on the cheek.

Rose giddily hopped up advising me that she'd be ready in a few minutes and then we could head out.

I awkwardly sat in the living room with Emmett and Shawn while Rose got dressed. I wondered if I should try to talk to Emmett to be polite, or if I should just keep quiet since he was reading a magazine and probably didn't want to be distracted. For at least ten minutes I sat on the couch and fiddled with the zipper on my jacket contemplating what to do. Suddenly, Emmett dropped the magazine in his lap and turned towards me to speak. The sudden movement made me jump.

"I just had a thought, Bella. If you're looking for work you can work for me," Emmett offered, hesitantly.

"What do you mean work for you? What would I be doing?" I asked.

"Well, Rose has been pestering me to hire someone to help her out for a while," he explained. Just then Rose walked back into the living room overhearing what Emmett was suggesting. "Rose also works for me. It's fairly easy work. I think you'd be a great addition to our team."

"That's a great idea," Rose exclaimed. "I'd love to have someone else to work with. Besides, Angela only works two days a week now and I'm overwhelmed with a job I was only supposed to do for three months, which turned into three years."

"You still haven't really told me what I'd be doing," I reminded them, smiling as I did so. "I don't have a lot of skills since I dropped out of high school."

"That's really not a problem," Emmett assured. "Basically you'd just need to answer some phone calls, write up contracts, and do a little filing. It's not hard and Rose always brings Shawn along while she works. We set up a whole section with toys for Shawn and also for our other employee's kids. You could bring your baby there after he or she is born if you'd like."

"What kind of work do you do?" I asked still unsure what type of business I was getting myself into.

He chuckled and hit his forehead with his hand like he felt stupid for not mentioning what his profession was. "I'm so sorry. I work in construction. My team and I work on quite a few jobs within the city. Your job would be to take inquiries, write up contracts and schedule our work load."

I shook my head feeling a little overwhelmed with the job duties he just listed. "How would I know what the right questions are or whether or not to schedule a job?"

"It's really not that hard," Rose answered. "I can train you. And if you don't like it there are no hard feelings if you decide to look for other work."

"So what do you think, Bella? Do you want the job?" Emmett asked.

I thought about it for only a second before I accepted with a smile and nod of my head. I didn't even think to ask what my hours would be, or where it was I would be working, or even how much I'd be getting paid. I was just so excited to have a job I didn't care about all the other details.

"This is perfect. I can't wait to tell you all about the men my husband works with," Rose squealed excitedly. She stood from the couch and grabbed her shoes by the door to put them on. "You should hear some of the stories I have about these men."

I glanced towards Emmett who was rolling his eyes. I hid my amused grin from both of them. Rose was hilarious with her gossip. I was sure working with her was probably going to be quite interesting.

"Well, since we don't need to go searching for a job why don't we go have a day of fun?" Rose offered. "We can get a manicure and pedicure maybe even a facial. You may need a few new outfits for work too. This will be a great day."

"Thanks for the offer but I don't have any money, Rose. Maybe some other time?" I suggested.

"Nonsense. We can give you a cash advance on your wages to help you get started,"  
>she offered, generously. "I need to get out of here for the day anyway."<p>

"Are you sure?" I asked, hesitant of accepting a cash advance.

"Of course, Bella," Rose insisted. "It's not a problem at all. Now let's go before it gets too late."

I stood and walked towards the door while Rose turned around and kissed Shawn on the head telling him to be good for his dad. Emmett walked Rose to the door and kissed her gently while telling her goodbye. "Don't be gone too long. I don't want you getting stuck with that storm rolling in," he reminded.

"We won't," she promised, kissing him again. "I'll stop and get something for dinner too so I don't have to cook tonight."

"Sounds like a great idea." He smiled down at her and kissed her one last time before she opened the door to leave. I followed her out to her car and got into the passenger seat.

"Thank you for doing this, Rose. It means so much to me that you and Emmett are giving me a job I'm probably nowhere near being qualified for. I promise I'll work hard and won't let either of you down." I vowed, sincerely grateful that they had considered me.

"I'm sure you'll do a great job. Now let me tell you about the men you'll be working around," she began, while pulling out of the driveway and heading out on the road. Part of me groaned internally at the thought of listening to her rumors of the people I was going to be working with, but another part of me was curious to know who these people were.

All the way into town Rose went on and on about every person on Emmett's team. She told me about each and every one of their personal lives as well as how hard they worked and how they behaved. By the time we reached the city I knew which men were married, single, divorced, and which ones to avoid.

Our first stop was a spa where we had manicures, pedicures, and a facial. Rose also insisted I should get my hair cut. I wasn't too thrilled about the idea, but I went ahead and had a little trimmed off so I had a new style for my new job. I was actually looking forward to this new job even though I had no idea what I would be doing. I just hoped I didn't disappoint Rose and Emmett.

After the spa Rose noticed it had already started raining so we headed back home. Rose was disappointed we couldn't get in a little shopping, but we didn't want to get stuck in the storm and the weather was already deteriorating. She stopped at a pizza place to pick up dinner for her family before heading home.

"Are you going to get anything for you and Edward?" Rose asked as we stood in line to order the pizza.

"No, I have some steak marinating for fajitas," I answered. "I've kind of been craving Mexican food lately."

"You know what I craved with Shawn?" she asked placing her hand on my arm in almost a panicked way. "I wanted smoked oysters every day. I put them on everything."

"That's really disgusting," I expressed nearly gagging at the thought.

"I know, right? I don't know what I was thinking. I can't even stand the smell of them now." She made a gagging noise and shook her head briskly at the thought. We walked to the counter where Rose ordered a small veggie lovers pizza, a small three meat pizza, and a small plain cheese pizza. I found it funny that they couldn't all agree on one type of pizza and had to have three different orders. I hoped my child wasn't so picky. We sat down at a nearby table to wait for the order and sipped on a couple sodas Rose had treated us to.

"So, where _is_ Edward today?" Rose asked.

"He went to Forks to visit his family," I answered, not offering any more information that required.

"You didn't go with him?"

I laughed and turned towards her with a confused expression. "No, why would I go with him?"

"Don't you know his family fairly well?" she fished, smiling innocently.

"I do but they weren't too thrilled when they found out I was pregnant," I explained.

"But you're best friends with Edward's sister, right? Wouldn't you want to go visit her?" she questioned further. I knew what she was doing. She was digging for dirt on my situation.

"Alice and I haven't talked for a while. She changed quite a bit when I was gone," I explained. "I think maybe I changed, too."

"But she's ok with you living with her brother?" she asked skeptically, with one eyebrow raised.

"She doesn't know," I admitted, dropping my head and shying away from the reveal. "I'm sure she won't be happy about it, but if all goes well with this job maybe I won't need to live with Edward for very much longer."

"You're telling the truth when you say there's nothing going on between you and Edward, aren't you?" I looked up at her and saw a confused, yet dubious, look on her face.

"Did you think I was lying?" I exclaimed, widening my eyes at her.

"Well I just didn't think it was normal for you two to be living together based on just a friendship," she replied.

"Honestly, that's all there is between us," I assured, my hands twisting together in my lap. The last thing I needed was a rumor that there was more than friendship between Edward and I floating around.

"Good, because I want to set you up on a date with this guy you'll be working with. His name is Jasper. He just started working for Emmett about six months ago. I think he's around twenty-one…" she gushed, excitedly.

"I don't want to date anyone while I'm pregnant," I interrupted, flatly.

"Oh come on. Who says you can't date while you're pregnant? If you can still have sex while pregnant there's no rule saying you can't date. Besides, I think you'll like him. He's such a sweet guy. He's kind of shy and quiet but such a gentleman. He's got that southern hospitality and these sexy dimples –almost as sexy as Emmett's. I think you two would hit it off well. I'll introduce you when you start work."

"Rose, I really don't want to date anyone. I actually called my baby's father last night to try and work things out," I admitted, hesitantly.

"Oh, how did that go?" she asked with a curious tone to her voice.

"Well I got the answering machine, but I'm sure he will call back when he isn't busy," I replied, staring down at my hands.

"Are you planning to get back with him? I assumed since you're living with Edward now things between you and the father must have ended badly."

"They did, but I still care about him and I think if we talk we could work things out. He was my whole world for so long. It's just hard not having him with me anymore," I trailed off, my voice getting smaller and smaller.

"Do you think getting back with someone who didn't want to step up to being a father in the first place is a good idea?" she questioned, though not unkindly.

"I never said anything about him not stepping up to be a father. Things sort of went bad before I found out," I defended hotly.

"But still if things weren't working out who's to say they will now just because you have a baby?" She reached out and touched my hand softly waiting for me to look up at her before pulling back. "A baby is a huge responsibility and can be a strain on even the strongest relationships."

"I just want my baby to have a father and a real family. I can't be a mom on my own. I don't know how to be a mom," I sniffled on the verge of tears.

"It's easy, Bella. It's all instinct. Besides you'll have me and even Edward for support. Edward seems to really care about you even if there isn't anything going on between you two."

"He's like that with everyone. He was that way when I was younger too." While I spoke I played with the straw of my soda and stared blankly down at the table.

"But I think it's more with you. I think he genuinely cares about you," Rose replied.

It all started to sound like she was fishing for information again so I didn't say anything. I didn't think Edward did anything more out of the ordinary than he would do for anyone else. It's just how Edward was. He always wanted to help people and he'd sacrifice everything for someone else's happiness.

"Anyway, about this guy, Jasper," she reminded, mentioning the guy she wanted to set me up with again. I really didn't want to date anyone, but I had a feeling I wasn't going to get out of this. Rose was persistent. "I think you should give it a try. There's nothing wrong with going out with a great guy to have a little fun while you wait for the douche-bag father to come back into the picture. You may be pleasantly surprised."

"Let me think about it," I conceded, grudgingly.

"Well think fast because I'm introducing you to him on Monday morning," she warned with a devious smile.

I rolled my eyes and huffed dramatically at the thought of dating someone new. I sipped on my soda silently while we waited for Rose's order to be called. I really had no interest in dating. All I wanted was to earn some money and get a place of my own so my baby and I had a place to live.

By the time we made it back to the house the rain was coming down so hard we could barely see anything. Rose pulled into her driveway and shut the engine off. We sat there for a little longer than we should have trying to find a good time to dash for the door.

"It looks like Edward is home," Rose pointed out gesturing towards his car parked in front of his house.

"That's kind of strange. He's barely been gone long enough to drive there and back," I commented.

"He probably wanted to stay in front of the storm."

"You're probably right," I agreed feeling a little nervous. The way we left things the night before made me hesitant to face him again.

She sighed, taking her keys out of the ignition and grabbing her purse as well as the pizzas. "Well, I guess now is as good a time as ever. I'll see you at eight on Monday morning."

"I'll be ready. Have a good night, Rose. And thanks again for everything," I said, opening up the door and dashing across the yard towards Edward's house. I walked in and shook off the rain and removed my shoes and coat. I could hear banging noises coming from down the hall so I slowly walked down towards the laundry room. Edward was mumbling angrily to himself and throwing clothes into the washing machine roughly.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" he snapped back at me, never turning around.

I walked towards him and placed my hand on his arm just as he was about to pour bleach on top of his clothes. "Don't pour that in there," I ordered with wide eyes. He grumbled and slammed the bottle of bleach down. "Let me help."

I gently pushed him aside and began to pull the clothing back out of the washing machine. I noticed some of the clothes were already damp, which told me something must have happened at his parent's house. I couldn't imagine his mom sending him home with wet clothes. "You need to separate the whites from the colors. The whites get bleach but nothing else, unless you want white splotches all over everything."

Edward stood behind me and watched silently while I loaded his clothes correctly into the washing machine, added the soap, and put it on the correct setting. "There. All done." I turned around to face him and he looked miserable. I knew something bad must have happened but he didn't look like he wanted to talk about it. I wasn't going to force it out of him if I wasn't exactly who he wanted to share with.

"Thanks," he said, before abruptly walking into the kitchen. I followed behind him and started pulling things out of the fridge and cupboards to get dinner started. He grabbed a beer from the fridge and started chugging it down before sitting on a barstool, picking at the label on the bottle.

"I wanted to tell you thank you for the baby book. You really didn't have to do that," I whispered, trying to start a conversation.

"I know. I just didn't need someone else mad at me," he deadpanned never looking up at me.

"I wasn't mad at you, Edward. I was mad at myself. I was upset because Mike never called me back. I thought he would. I'm sorry it took it out on you." I looked over at him expecting some sort of response but he never lifted his eyes away from his bottle of beer. "He hasn't called has he?" I hesitantly asked hoping maybe he had while Edward was out.

"No," he answered curtly. I took a deep breath fighting back the tears. Every moment that Mike didn't call made me realize even more he didn't care and probably never would. I was on my own. I was going to raise our baby all by myself and my baby would never have a father.

I made dinner silently while the wind howled outside and the heavy rain pounded down on the house. Edward never once said a word. He just sat at the counter picking at the label of his beer and occasionally taking a drink. When the washing machine was done, I went to put the laundry in the dryer and Edward followed behind to watch what I did. Afterwards he took his place back on the stool and played with his bottle cap, twirling it around in his fingers.

Just as I was finishing up dinner Edward finally spoke. "Bella, do you think we're doing the right thing by living together?"

I suddenly stopped what I was doing, and stared at him with a gaping mouth. I nodded my head a couple times understanding perfectly well what he was trying to say. "You don't need to worry about it much longer. Emmett offered me a job today. As soon as I make some money I'll find a place of my own. I'll get out of your life and never ask you for another thing." My throat tightened at the rejection I was feeling. Not only had Mike rejected me, but also my best friend, and now Edward.

"Bella, I didn't mean it like that. It's just…" he trailed off with a heavy sigh and ran his hand through his hair in frustration. "I'm sorry. I just don't know how to make everyone happy. My family found out about you staying here. My mom is pissed at me and my sister thinks I betrayed her. I don't know what to do."

"I'm sorry I'm causing you so many problems," I cried. "I never meant to hurt you."

"Bella," he sighed sympathetically while standing from the stool and walking over to me, pulling me into a warm embrace. I sobbed against his chest feeling horrible for making his life so hard. "You didn't hurt me. I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, I'm glad you did. I need to be reminded that I'm on my own. I don't have anyone anymore, and I can't expect people to let me depend on them after what I've done," I gasped out, continuing to cry in his arms.

"You didn't do anything wrong," he insisted. "You made some bad choices but you aren't a bad person." He soothed my hair and rocked me back and forth. It had been a while since I felt that much sincere comfort from someone. "And you aren't alone. You have me. I'll always be here to support you no matter what."

I pulled away and wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. "If I'm causing problems with your family it would probably be best if I left. I can figure things out on my own."

"I'm sure you can, but you don't have to." He pulled me back into his arms and held me tightly. "I'm sorry, Bella. I never meant to make you cry. You can stay as long as you want. I'm not going to let my family influence my decisions when I know what I'm doing is right. I should have never let my family put doubt in my mind about my decision."

"You didn't sound so sure a few minutes ago," I reminded, as my tears began to subside.

"I _am_ sure. You can count on me. Once my family realizes you aren't a bad influence they'll understand," he smiled, wiping my face gently.

"Why do they think I'm a bad influence? How can they even believe I did all those things they claimed?" I asked. "I know I made a lot of mistakes but I didn't intend to end up this way."

"It's my sister. I don't know why, but she told my parents this bogus story about you and my mom doesn't think Alice is capable of doing anything wrong. She thinks they have this great mother-daughter relationship and Alice would never lie to her about anything. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before my mother realizes Alice isn't all innocent like she thinks she is."

I nodded my head and turned to dish up our food. The thought that Alice had betrayed me just as much as everyone else, hurt more than anything I'd dealt with. Alice had been my best friend since we were just little girls. I didn't understand why she would hurt me by telling her mother, and who knows who else, nasty rumors about me.

I sniffled and wiped at my eyes even more, while I tried to hide my hurt and focus on dishing up dinner.

"You miss her, don't you?" Edward asked causing the tears to once again fall from my eyes. I turned toward him and nodded my head. He wrapped his arms around me and shushed my crying.

"I just need my best friend right now and I don't have anyone. I know I hurt her by leaving, but I didn't think she would be this mad. I need her," I cried.

"I know. I'm so sorry my sister isn't mature enough to be a good friend, but I hope I'm a good stand in for her."

His comment made me giggle. "I think so far you've done a pretty good job." He chuckled and ducked his head bashfully as I looked up at him. At that moment there was a loud roar of thunder and seconds later the electricity in the entire house went out. We both burst into laughter as we stood in the kitchen in nearly full darkness.

We waited a few moments to see if the electricity would come back on but it didn't so we pulled away from each other and went in different directions.

I fumbled around the kitchen trying to plate the food so we could at least eat, while Edward searched for a flashlight. Edward's cell phone rang shortly after the lights went out, making me jump from the sudden shrill noise in the silence. I couldn't help the feeling of hope that maybe it was finally Mike who was calling. I watched Edward closely as he picked up his phone to see who it was. He grumbled as he answered, diminishing my excitement.

"Hello, Mom," he snarled into the phone.

I walked away and maneuvered my way through the darkness to find the table. Edward made his way into his bedroom and shut the door while he talked to his mom. I waited at the table in the darkness for him to finish on the phone. He was on the phone for at least ten minutes before he walked out carrying a handful of candles and a lighter. He placed a couple on the table and lit them so we could see our food then brought a couple into the living room.

"Well, at least we can see while we eat," Edward joked. He sat down at the table and we ate the slightly cold meal while talking about my new job offer and what I would be doing. He didn't divulge what the conversation with his mom was about, but he didn't seem as upset as he was earlier. Maybe he worked things out with his mom. Maybe she didn't hate me as much as she seemed to. After we finished eating, Edward started a fire in the fireplace and moved all the candles into the living room illuminating the room nicely.

We didn't know how long the electricity was going to be out, but the storm was still going strong outside so we sort of decided it would probably be better to stay in the living room for the night where there was heat. Edward sat in a chair reading a book while I sat on the couch wrapped in a blanket and looking through my baby book again. There wasn't anything else I could fill out since it was still so early in my pregnancy but I just liked looking at it and wondering when certain milestones would happen.

"Edward?" I began, breaking the peacefulness of the house. He dropped the book to his lap and looked over at me. "How did your family find out I was staying here?"

He snorted a laugh and shied away from my question. "You might not want to know."

"Why? You have me really nervous now. What happened?" I begged.

"My mom found a pair of your panties mixed in with my laundry," he chuckled through his words. My face turned bright red and my hands instantly went to cover my face from embarrassment.

"I'm sorry," I apologized.

"Why do you always do that?" he asked making me pull my hands away from my face and look at him with a confused expression. "You don't always need to be sorry for everything. I'm not mad at you because _I_ accidently grabbed a pair of your underwear when I was grabbing my stuff. I think it's a good thing, though. I don't want to hide you from anyone and make you feel like you're doing something wrong. I don't care who knows anymore. My mom and sister are very close-minded and they aren't willing to hear both sides of the story. I tried to stick up for you and explain what you told me about what really happened, but neither of them were willing to listen. The phone call I got from my mother earlier was her calling to apologize for accusing me of some things and not hearing me out. I'm pretty sure my father put her up to it because she still didn't seem like she was willing to listen to me. I think it was just her attempt of trying to keep peace for the time being." He sighed heavily and stared out into the darkness aimlessly.

It was nice to hear him say he wasn't going to hide me away like I was some dirty secret he had. It was even nicer knowing he was sticking up for me against his mom. I could only hope someday his mom and even Alice wouldn't be angry at me and be willing to hear my side of what really happened. "Anyway, you don't always need to be sorry. You have never done anything to me to warrant being sorry. Other than taking over my kitchen and rearranging things so I can't find them," he said with a smirk.

I opened my mouth to say I was sorry for taking over his kitchen, but he quickly stopped me with a raise of his hand and a raised eyebrow.

"Besides, I think it's time I finally learn how to take care of myself. I've depended on both of my parents for far too much and I'm starting to wonder if it's affected how they treat me and how they react to my decisions. I need to learn how to cook for myself and do my own laundry, among other things. I don't even want you to do it for me anymore. I was paying attention today and I think I can handle it."

I hid my amused giggle but it didn't do any good. Edward knew I was laughing at his comment and he threw a pillow at me.

"I'm serious. I'm going to try it on my own," he insisted. "I just may need some help at first."

"I can help," I agreed. "First thing I'll need to do is hide the bleach." I wanted my remark to make him laugh but just as I said it there was a really loud crash of thunder outside. I jumped and even squealed a little from the sound. Edward laughed at me instead of my joke.

"Scared?" he asked in a mocking tone.

I threw the pillow he threw at me earlier back at him and told him to shut up in a playful way. The thunder outside continued to get louder and louder with every moment. I knew I was safe inside but it didn't change the fact that the loud crashing noises rumbling across the sky frightened me. With another small chuckle, Edward put his book on the coffee table and got up to come sit next to me. He put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close to his side. I curled up next to him and wrapped the blanket up around my neck and shoulders.

"When Alice was a little girl she used to come into my bedroom when there was a storm and lay in bed with me. I would wrap my arms around her tightly just like this to protect her from the storm so she could sleep," he reminisced. I smiled at the memory he shared with me about him and Alice. Sometimes I think when we were all kids things were so much easier and uncomplicated. I wished there was a way to go back to the innocence of my childhood and not mess up the way I had.

There was another loud roar outside and I felt Edward slightly jump next to me. I sat up a little, smirking at him. "Who's scared now?" I teased.

He smiled bashfully. "I'm just reacting to you," he said, looking away from me.

"Uh huh, right." I teased even more. He shook his head and sighed while rubbing my shoulder. I curled back into his side and listened to the thunder and rain. We lapsed into a peaceful silence while comforting each other from the storm raging outside. I wasn't scared anymore being close to Edward. Just his presence and his acceptance of me made everything seem possible.

****Important message****

**Due to a very busy schedule in September I won't be able to update for a while. I hope to be back in October and without any more delays in posting. Please understand that I will be back. I won't give up on this story and will see it through to the end. I just need to take a month off so I can focus on the overflowing RL schedule I have.**

**A teaser to get by with: In the next chapter there will be some dates, some truths revealed, and some healing that will begin. Just so everyone knows, though this is an Edward/Bella story and even if Bella goes on a date with Jasper (which I'm sure you're all freaking out about but there is a purpose for it) or Edward goes on a date with someone (even scarier, right), it doesn't mean much. Edward and Bella will be together eventually. I just want to build their relationship gradually over the course of Bella's pregnancy.**

**Don't forget to nominate and vote in the Emerging Swan Awards and on September 1****st**** the 80's Power Ballad Contest entries will be posted so please read and vote for your favorites. There's still plenty of time to write an entry for the contest also. Information on both of these is on my profile.**

**Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. :)**


End file.
